US alcohol and firearms regulator abandons BlackBerry for iPhone, other platforms

RIM's mobile marketshare among US federal agencies has been dealt another blow with news that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives plans to swap out its entire fleet of BlackBerrys — approximately 3,800 — in favor of competing devices. The agency's chief information officer certainly didn't mince words in an interview with Politico, saying that the ATF would "delete the BlackBerry from the mix." As was the case with similar moves by NOAA and Halliburton earlier this month, the iPhone is set to be the big winner here, with the ATF selecting Apple's handset to replace 60 percent (or 2,400) of those units starting in March. The remaining 1,400 will be phased out and replaced with a mix of other smartphones, though...